Shafaq News/ Yemen's Ansarallah (Houthis) announced they would begin enforcing a naval blockade on Israel’s Haifa port. 

In a statement, they clarify the decision was taken “in response to the enemy’s brutal aggression against our brothers and people in Gaza,” accusing Israel of committing daily massacres and a “crime of genocide unprecedented in modern history.”

The Houthis warned all shipping companies with vessels currently docked in or en route to Haifa to consider the port a military target, effective immediately. “Haifa port has now entered our bank of targets,” the statement said.

The announcement came days after the Yemeni military claimed it had successfully halted operations at the Israeli port of Eilat, referred to by its Arabic name, Umm al-Rashrash, as part of a broader effort to pressure Israel through air and maritime disruption.

Yemen’s military leadership, aligned with the Houthi movement, said the blockade is aimed at supporting the Palestinian people and their resistance, adding that all support operations, including the aerial and naval blockade, would be suspended only if Israel ceases its military campaign and lifts the blockade on Gaza.

On Tuesday, Ansarallah launched a hypersonic ballistic missile toward Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv.

Despite the latest agreement with the US to halt attacking American ships in the Red Sea, the Houthis have continued targeting Israeli sites with missiles and drones.